Adjustment of INAIL compensation

By circular no. 26 of 16 September 2024, INAIL announces the annual update of the amounts of compensation for biological damage, with effect from 1 July 2024. The measure is intended to ensure that the financial benefits paid by INAIL to workers who have suffered an accident or an occupational disease remain adequate in the light of changes in the cost of living. Each year the amounts of compensation are updated on the basis of the consumer price index for the families of blue-collar and white-collar workers, as recorded by ISTAT.

The circular provides that, for 2024, the adjustment will be 5.4%, applied from 1 July.

What is biological damage?

Biological damage is an injury to a person’s psycho-physical integrity which limits their ability to carry out ordinary daily activities. This kind of damage is not confined to financial loss; it directly affects the quality of life of the person concerned. In the employment context, biological damage may be caused by an accident at work or by an occupational disease that leaves permanent effects on the individual.

Compensation for biological damage is determined using tables prepared by INAIL, which set the amount payable according to the severity of the harm suffered. That harm is expressed as a percentage, from a minimum of 6% up to 100%, where 100% indicates the maximum degree of disability.

In general, as regards INAIL compensation, there are two kinds:

- A capital payment: awarded when biological damage is assessed at less than 16%. In that case INAIL pays a single sum, determined according to the percentage of disability and the worker’s age. The younger the worker and the higher the percentage of damage, the greater the amount received.

- An annuity: if biological damage is assessed at 16% or more, the worker receives compensation in the form of a monthly annuity, paid for life. The amount of the annuity depends both on the severity of the harm and on the worker’s age at the time of the accident.

The calculation tables prepared by INAIL are intended to ensure fair compensation, taking account both of the complexity of the harm suffered and of the long-term consequences for the worker’s quality of life.